kim beazley

Ah yes, sport and politics can be such a hilarious mix sometimes.

Here's an extract from the hansard from the House of Reps session in Canberra earlier this evening. By way of background, the Dramatis Personae of this vignette are as follows:

It still hurts. Seventeen days later, and the re-election of John Winston Howard for a fourth term of government is still unbelievable. Despite his government's appalling track record on humanitarian issues, on foreign policy, on trade relations and industrial development, despite its under-publicised shortcomings in economic management, the Liberals and Nationals are back with an increased majority. Worse still, they will hold at least half of the senate seats from 1 July 2005, and might just (for we still do not know for sure) gain an absolute majority.

When I read yesterday that Mark Latham was promising to raise Townsville's profile as a defence base, I thought he was planning a special assignment for the North Queensland Cowboys. As it happens, it's a promise to establish an infantry battalion and a parachute battalion in the city, which is situated - fancy - in the marginal Liberal seat of Herbert.